How To Avoid Decision Paralysis in the Cloud

I don’t need to sell you on the benefits of cloud computing — I shouldn’t have to, anyway. Most people have bought into all the benefits of cloud: It’s automated, easy to deploy, has fewer start up costs, and requires less in capital expenditures. What’s not to like?

That’s until you get into the actual implementation of cloud services. That’s where people get hung up and it’s a problem Bernard Golden, CEO of HyperStratus, a cloud computing consulting firm, sees all the time.

While the cloud offers great benefits, it also introduces new concerns that you need to manage before you deploy, says Golden. For example:

Public and private data – What are your new security issues? How is compliance being handled? What about risk? Where is the data physically being located?

Heterogeneous data – All cloud implementations are with different vendors and include some local data as well. Which vendors do you choose?

A committed decision – While cloud providers like to see themselves as a utility, the cloud can’t be turned on and off like a light switch, nor can you just get “power” from someone else by switching over. This is a 10-to-20 year commitment. You can’t make the decision lightly.

Too Many Choices

Decision paralysis sets in when buyers can’t make sense of all the choices. Golden says part of managing the glut of options is to simply think about your needs and start filtering out those vendors that can’t meet them.